Global interest in renewable energy sources has seen an increase in recent times. Due to environmental factors, geopolitical concerns and energy costs, options are being explored to replace our dependence on fossil fuels. Some of the various renewable energy sources include photovoltaic cells, or solar cells. Photovoltaic cells are an attractive option partially because of their potential to capture the large amounts of energy emitted from the sun and convert it to electricity.
Organic photovoltaic (OPV) cells may be used in place of common silicon and other inorganic photovoltaic cells. Silicon cells are relatively expensive and are generally limited to rigid, high cost designs. Organic photovoltaic cells (OPVC) are photovoltaic cells that use organic electronics. Organic electronics deals with conductive organic polymers or small organic molecules that are capable of light absorption and charge transport. One of the general features of organic photovoltaic cells is their lower cost due to the ability to coat them economically on flexible substrates. The resulting flexible cells are easier and less expensive to integrate in buildings, vehicles, and other substrates where capture, storage and usage are desirable.
It would be desirable protect the organic photovoltaic cell from the harmful effects of oxygen. It would also be desirable to increase the shelf life, as well as the overall lifetime, of organic photovoltaic cells.